From document EP-A-1429056, a lever device is known for controlling a gearbox, wherein a permanent magnet mounted on the lever is displaceable with the lever facing a fixed magnet with which it cooperates by magnetic attraction for maintaining the lever in a stable position. This device cannot provide the return of the lever when the latter is moved away from its stable position and it is therefore necessary to associate with the lever, return springs as well as ball detent means forming hard points between the stable positions of the lever, and means for filtering vibrations, which are mounted on the components connecting the lever to the gearbox.
The setting up of these return, ball detent, and filtering means is expensive and their use is expressed by wear of the parts in contact.